Profile

An Australian-born left-back blessed with lightning pace, Brad Smith graduated to the first-team squad under Brendan Rodgers during a breakthrough 2013-14 season for the defender.

Spotted while playing for the same high school as fellow Red Jack Robinson, Smith combines solid defending with exciting forays forward - most notably his ability to produce rampaging runs along the flank.

An England youth international, he earned crucial experience with his country during their run to the quarter-finals of the U17 World Cup in Mexico and also travelled on his club's tour to North America in the summer of 2012.

A serious anterior cruciate ligament injury disrupted Brad's upward progress, but the popular character returned to U21s duty in October 2013 and marked his comeback with a sublime, long-range goal.

Impressed by the young man's development, Rodgers included Smith in a group of Academy starlets invited to train with the senior players midway through the Northern Irishman's second season at the helm.

The full-back was named on the bench for the Reds' trip to Manchester City on Boxing Day, then reached a landmark by entering the action as a substitute against Chelsea for his debut on December 29, 2013.

He joined League One side Swindon Town on a youth loan in August 2014, making 10 appearances during his stay there, and earned an international call-up by the senior Australia side.